His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
McHugh's cutter averages 89.0 mph, and has touched 92.2.
466 thrown, 45.2% of his pitches.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
McHugh's sweeper moves 96.7 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
488 thrown, averaging 79.9 mph.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
McHugh releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.2 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1032 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
McHugh averages 84.5 mph across his arsenal, 6th percentile in the league.
1032 pitches in 2023. 6th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 730th in MLB.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes McHugh goes to the sweeper: 56.9% of his two-strike pitches, against 43% the rest of the time.
318 two-strike pitches in 2023.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off McHugh's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 93.7 mph, against 86.5 off his cutter.
46 and 466 of them thrown.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
McHugh's 4-seam fastball carries 15.8 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
46 thrown, averaging 91.7 mph.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
McHugh's stuff spins at 2,609 rpm, 96th percentile in the league.
1032 pitches in 2023. 96th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 32nd in MLB.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
McHugh lands 54.7% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.9% of his breaking balls.
512 of his fastballs, 516 of his breaking balls.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
McHugh lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.23 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1032 located pitches in 2023.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
McHugh throws a strike on the first pitch 66.8% of the time.
265 plate appearances started in 2023.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against McHugh projects a .360 average, 16th percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 652nd in MLB.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
McHugh's sweeper spins at 2,759 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
488 thrown in 2023.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count McHugh throws a fastball 53.7% of the time, against 40.7% when he is ahead.
246 pitches behind in the count, 322 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
McHugh works with 2 pitches: Sweeper and Cutter. The sweeper is 47.3% of everything he throws.
1032 classified pitches in 2023.
He lives on one side of the plate
McHugh works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.4 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
1032 located pitches in 2023.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
McHugh puts 56.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.9% when he is ahead.
246 located pitches behind, 322 ahead.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
16.7% of McHugh's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
172 of 1032 located pitches.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 35.6% of the contact McHugh gives up is hit hard, 72nd percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 72nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 216th in MLB.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
McHugh releases the ball 6.7 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
1031 tracked pitches in 2023.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.8 mph separates McHugh's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.7 against 79.9.
46 and 488 of them respectively.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against McHugh is weak: 87.5 mph off the bat on average, 70th percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 70th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 237th in MLB.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
McHugh has thrown 46 4-seam fastballs this season, 4.5% of his pitches, at 91.7 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
1032 classified pitches in 2023.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
McHugh's cutter averages 89.0 mph, and has touched 92.2.
466 thrown, 45.2% of his pitches.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off McHugh's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 93.7 mph, against 86.5 off his cutter.
46 and 466 of them thrown.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
McHugh's sweeper spins at 2,759 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
488 thrown in 2023.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
McHugh works with 2 pitches: Sweeper and Cutter. The sweeper is 47.3% of everything he throws.
1032 classified pitches in 2023.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.8 mph separates McHugh's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.7 against 79.9.
46 and 488 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
McHugh has thrown 46 4-seam fastballs this season, 4.5% of his pitches, at 91.7 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
1032 classified pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
McHugh's sweeper moves 96.7 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
488 thrown, averaging 79.9 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
McHugh's 4-seam fastball carries 15.8 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
46 thrown, averaging 91.7 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
McHugh releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.2 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1032 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
McHugh releases the ball 6.7 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
1031 tracked pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
McHugh averages 84.5 mph across his arsenal, 6th percentile in the league.
1032 pitches in 2023. 6th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 730th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes McHugh goes to the sweeper: 56.9% of his two-strike pitches, against 43% the rest of the time.
318 two-strike pitches in 2023.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
McHugh throws a strike on the first pitch 66.8% of the time.
265 plate appearances started in 2023.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count McHugh throws a fastball 53.7% of the time, against 40.7% when he is ahead.
246 pitches behind in the count, 322 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
McHugh puts 56.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.9% when he is ahead.
246 located pitches behind, 322 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
McHugh's stuff spins at 2,609 rpm, 96th percentile in the league.
1032 pitches in 2023. 96th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 32nd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
McHugh lands 54.7% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.9% of his breaking balls.
512 of his fastballs, 516 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
McHugh lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.23 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1032 located pitches in 2023.
He lives on one side of the plate
McHugh works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.4 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
1032 located pitches in 2023.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
16.7% of McHugh's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
172 of 1032 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against McHugh projects a .360 average, 16th percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 652nd in MLB.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 35.6% of the contact McHugh gives up is hit hard, 72nd percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 72nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 216th in MLB.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against McHugh is weak: 87.5 mph off the bat on average, 70th percentile.
1032 pitches in 2023. 70th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 237th in MLB.
Astros
Career team 2014–2019